


ninety-six percent

by skygrove



Category: Wanna One (Band)
Genre: M/M, is this fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-27
Updated: 2017-11-27
Packaged: 2019-02-07 14:28:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12843144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skygrove/pseuds/skygrove
Summary: jihoon isn't sure relationships are worth it,maybe daniel can change his mind.





	ninety-six percent

**Author's Note:**

> look at me sharing something that isn't rated

It was after the dance contest one Friday night. After the visiting team left and the stages emptied and their after-contest hangout finally broke up, and Jihoon was walking the six blocks back to his and Daniel's street, and thinking about how that bully had been picking on Daehwi and Jinyoung and Daniel had got up in his face and backed the guy down.

"That was pretty awesome earlier, hyung. I thought you were gonna fight that guy for a second."

"Hmm?" Daniel glanced over and cracked a small grin. "Ah…yeah. He was a jerk. And those two get enough shit at school, and I can't do anything about it there."

He chuckled dryly. "You need to keep the suspensions to a minimum or you won't be able to graduate in spring."

"True," Daniel nodded.

Jihoon let the smile fade away slowly in the silence. His fingers picked at lint inside his pockets. "Do you think it's really hard?"

"Being gay?"

"Being in a relationship." Jihoon flicked some lint onto the sidewalk.

"Ah," A pause. "I think so. _They_ definitely think so." Daniel shrugged.

"Mmm." Jihoon glanced both ways as they crossed the dark, empty street – a drilled-in habit manifesting itself even when there was no need. "They were always close. They seemed happy as friends, too."

"Yeah." Daniel didn't add anything. They both knew how it had been.

But that wasn't all Jihoon had on his mind. "I mean, I’m really not trying to downplay what they have to put up with or anything, but even when it's, well… _straight_ ," he cleared his throat, "there's lots of problems and things that come up. In relationships and stuff. Right?"

"Yeah, I guess" Daniel sighed.

"Why do people do it, then?"

Daniel must have heard something in his voice – maybe that _thing_ he wasn't sure he was ready to say was sneaking out a little. Maybe he really wanted to get around to _that thought_. Maybe he'd say it tonight, finally…

"Well, you know." He smiled a little. "It's love, right? It's worth it." The words seemed to say _that's that_ , but Daniel's eyes stayed on him. Listening.

"But like, friendship is great too, right? Like, what's not to be happy with? You can be friends forever too. I mean, look at us. I don't remember a time when I wasn’t friends with you. My life wouldn't be _my life_ without you in it, hyung"

Daniel looked away. Still smiling a little though. Tightly…but his voice was light. "Well yeah. I mean, uh, same here." Daniel's head ducked a little.

He pressed on, speaking his thoughts…trying to edge around _that thought_ until maybe he would feel ready for it. "So like, _why?_ Wouldn't it be better to just be friends, and have someone in your life that way? Wouldn't it be so much easier? You wouldn't have to worry about all the relationship things, and if you ever had to go your separate ways, sure it would hurt, but it wouldn't be like a breakup. You just…deal with the change and move on."

The pause was longer this time, Daniel's voice a little softer when he asked, "You'd deal okay if I was gone?"

Jihoon bit his lip. "I don’t know. Actually, I…I don’t know. I really can't imagine life without…uh, I mean, _like that_. Which I know I just think that _now_ , like how I thought the world would end when Samuel moved away but I got over it after a while. I know it might be just that it _feels_ like that. But…still."

A sigh from beside him – and above him. "Yeah. _Still_."

 _The thought_ was nagging really bad, now. Jihoon shivered and crossed his arms over his chest. "I just…wonder why it has to turn into that. Love, and all. Seems so unnecessary."

He startled slightly when a warm arm draped over his shoulders, Daniel pulling him a little closer in a friendly hug. "Sounds like you've got a bit of a bone to pick with Cupid there, Jihooni." His tone was a little teasing, but the joke dropped out quickly as Daniel asked seriously, "Why shouldn't it turn out like that? If people want to go for it, they should go for it. Sure it's a risk. But my guess is, it's not always so dangerous. You pick someone you already trust and love can be a pretty safe bet."

Jihoon pinched the insides of his elbows and frowned. It felt like there were words literally trying to push their way out past his lips, and he wasn't sure he was ready yet, he wasn't sure it was a good idea to say that, he half believed he was going to _really really_ regret this in like two seconds.

But the other half of him was dead certain that if there was one soul in the world he could take a risk on, it was obviously…had always been…always, forever _would be_ …

"I've been thinking lately that maybe I feel that kind of thing about you." The spirit of Jihoon's stomach hit the pavement, probably thanks to his ribs suddenly deciding to squeeze as tightly as they could around his chest, trying to crush his lungs. He swallowed. "That kind of…of love thing."

Jihoon had no idea what Daniel's face looked like, because he was staring at the far edge of the sidewalk with wide eyes. He felt Daniel's steps slow down, however. The arm hovered on his shoulders for a long moment, feeling like the weight of a million worlds at once. Jihoon desperately clenched his fists, refusing the sudden urge to bite his nails, which he hadn't done in two victoriously habit-free years.

Daniel's voice was quiet and didn't give anything away. "You thinking about taking a chance on me, Wink Boy?" The elementary school nickname made Jihoon snort with a sudden, nervous laugh.

"I just mean…lately, I've been feeling like…like hyung said. Like it'd be worth it. Not that it has to be that way!" He added in a rush. "I mean, I'm still totally cool with things the way they are and stuff, and we can forget I said anything, seriously, if you want I'll never bring it up again. Just…I wondered…what you thought," he trailed off lamely.

A pull on his shoulders dragged Jihoon around to face the older boy. Daniel set his other hand on Jihoon's shoulder as well and held him there while he stared down at him. Jihoon fidgeted, not feeling too comfortable with the eye contact, but not such a total weenie that he couldn't make himself meet that stare. At least a little.

"You wanna know what I think?" Daniel's face was intent. "I think being your friend has been the best thing ever, and I wouldn't trade one second of the past thirteen years for anything else in the world. _And_ ," he added, as Jihoon's stomach started heading for China, "I think you'd be worth the risk, any day. You'd be worth the risk of a _firing squad_ , Jihoon. You, um…I…" Daniel faltered, one hand coming off Jihoon's shoulder to wipe down his own face. "I wasn't gonna say anything," he mumbled. "I was happy as long as you were happy so…I wasn't gonna say. But…" Dark eyes that reflected the shine of a streetlight flashed back to his face, "since you brought it up…um. I've been thinking kind of the same thing. About you. For…a while."

Jihoon's stomach had changed course a while back, redirecting from its journey to China, and it was now flying somewhere up among the moonlight-rimmed clouds. Along with his head and heart, which were actually floating in the direction of the stars, he was pretty sure.

"So…what? Should we…try…?"

"Dating?" Daniel finished for him with a nervous wince. He cleared his throat. "What I mean is, uh, yeah. We could try that. I mean, I'd like to. If you want to."

Jihoon blinked. "We'd be…boyfriends."

A sudden laugh startled him as Daniel let go. "Oh my God, that sounded really weird. I mean, hearing you say it like that…and all."

"Yeah." Jihoon grinned nervously, then took a deep breath. "But that's what we'd be."

Daniel went still and nodded. "Uh huh." He licked his lips. "You wanna?"

Hands fidgeting with his shirt hem, Jihoon played that question back in his mind. He really hadn't thought things would go quite like _this_. It had just been a _thought_ , an _idea_ he'd been toying with, worrying about, picking over for a few months. Now, tonight, it could suddenly be _real_ …

He squinted up at Daniel. "I think…I'm about ninety-five percent sure…that I do."

Daniel grinned and rolled his eyes. "Well, I guess that makes me ninety-five percent your boyfriend, for now."

Jihoon was about to smile and say something to that. But Daniel kissed him.

It was a big hand around his bicep that pulled him in as Daniel leaned down, and then it was warm, moist lips smushed against his own and a warm exhale against his face and Jihoon blinked but his eyes didn't come open again on the second blink because his head was tipping back and Daniel's other hand was pushing its way back through his hair to the base of his neck. Jihoon's hands came up and just sort of rested awkwardly against his friend's chest, but he didn't notice that until after because his heart was beating louder than the speakers at the dance contest had been and for all it was hardly more than just a meeting of lips…it was a pretty damn amazing meeting, if you asked Jihoon.

Then Daniel pulled back just to bump his forehead against Jihoon's and watch him with a big, dorky grin, and Jihoon tried to think of something to say, and all Daniel said was, "Huh."

Jihoon swallowed. "Ninety…" He swallowed again. "Ninety-six percent. Now."

Daniel _giggled_. "Right."

They stayed like that for a while, but it was too late and too cold to stay forever, so they eventually went home. They forgot to hold hands. Jihoon remembered about it when he was alone in his room and momentarily snapped out of his daze to smack his own forehead.   _Holding hands! Come on! We should have…_

Then he calmed himself down with a promise.

_Tomorrow._


End file.
